Al-Qaeda's Syrian threat

2:31 PM,
Dec. 6, 2013

Written by

David Ignatius

WASHINGTON -- As al-Qaeda grows more powerful in Syria -- seeking "complete control over the liberated areas," according to a new Syrian rebel intelligence report -- moderate opposition leaders are voicing new interest in a political settlement of the grinding civil war. But a peace agreement may just be a prelude to a new war against the terrorists.

This search for a political transition has also drawn together a disparate group of nations, including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States. These nations met quietly in Geneva on Nov. 21 to discuss ways to provide humanitarian ...